Kathryn D. Blanchard

According to the Association of American Colleges and Universities, a liberal arts education “is an approach to learning that empowers individuals and prepares them to deal with complexity, diversity, and change. It provides students with broad knowledge of the wider world.”[1] It is, in other words, not simply about job readiness; it is also about learning the skills necessary to promoting pluralism and participating in civil society. In the global community we live in, the comparative study of religion is something global citizens cannot safely ignore.

Because of religion’s salience, religious studies can be not just academically but also personally challenging. The world’s religious traditions have arisen out of human beings’ attempts to organize and theorize the most important and puzzling parts of their lives – things like family, society, sexuality, economics, food, politics, and death. To spend time wrestling with humanity’s diverse responses to life’s big questions and problems takes effort and imagination, as well as perseverance and curiosity. It means, moreover, accepting that our studies will not necessarily offer any satisfying answers, but those who invest themselves fully in this endeavor will be rewarded by living in an expanded and more fascinating universe.

Discipline

Educational Background

Rank

Associate Professor

My career at Alma began in

2006

My expertise:

I am interested in the complicated ways contemporary American Christians integrate their theological understandings and their everyday lives. I have a particular interest in how Christians think about economic matters, especially as these intersect with questions of justice for women and minorities.